Sooner or later, first-time homebuyers will be eligible for state grant of $3,000-$5,000

Carpenters for Sable Homes Inc. work on a home near Cedar Springs in this 2010 photograph.File photo | Mlive Media Group

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A West Michigan housing developer is trying to get ahead of the game by promoting a yet-to-be-finalized state program that will give first-time homebuyers between $3,000 and $5,000 to purchase a house.

John Bitely, president of Sable Homes Inc., has been telling his customers the program will be available as soon as Dec. 3.

MSHDA spokesperson Mary Lou Keenon said Friday the program won’t be ready to issue checks until after Jan. 1.

“It’s not in place yet. It will be by the end of the year,” Keenon said. “What we’re trying to do is make this as streamlined and accessible as possible.”

The program is part of a nationwide settlement with five mortgage lenders. The program will be available to first-time homebuyers or homebuyers who have not owned a home for three years.

The program will dole out $15 million on a first-come first-served basis to qualifying buyers. Veterans will be eligible for up to $5,000 while non-veterans will be able to get up to $3,000.

Another $5 million will be available to help current owners get up to $500 toward re-financing their homes.

Despite the uncertainty about the date, Bitely said Friday he’s going full speed ahead on his company’s promotion of the program.

“It takes three to five weeks to process a mortgage,” he said.

“A lot of the good home inventory is pretty low. For those buyers that want a quality home and a new home, they need to act now to get this money before it runs out.”

Bitely said his company has six or eight houses that are ready to move into and he expects to complete another eight to 10 homes by year’s end.

According to Bitely, the participants can use any type of financing for the home purchase. There are no income limits for buyers or purchase price limits and the grant does not require repayment, he said.

The program is part of a $97.2 million settlement Michigan reached with from five leading bank mortgage companies that were sued by 49 state attorneys general. The entire settlement across all states totaled about $25 billion.

Other parts of the settlement include a $7.5 million fund for “foreclosure rescue scam restitution, $25 million for blight elimination, $20 million for foreclosure counseling and $10 million to help low-performing schools in Michigan.